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Circular No. 20/2010/TT-BTP of November 30, 2010, detailing a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 40/2010/ND-CP of April 12, 2010, on the examination and handling of legal documents

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 93/2008/ND-CP of August 22, 2008, defining the functions, tasks, powers and organizational structure of the Ministry of Justice;

Pursuant to the Government’s Decree No. 40/2010/ND-CP of April 12, 2010, on the examination and handling of legal documents;

The Minister of Justice details a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 40/2010/ND-CP of April 12, 2010, on the examination and handling of legal documents as follows:

Chapter I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

Article 1. Scope of regulation

This Circular details a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 40/2010/ND-CP of April 12, 2010, on the examination and handling of legal documents (below referred to as Decree No. 40).

Article 2. Documents subject to examination and handling

Documents subject to examination and handling under Decree No. 40 include:

1. Legal documents defined in Clause 2, Article 1 of Decree No. 40.

2. Documents which contain legal norms but are not issued in the form of legal documents and documents with legal norms or a format and contents similar to legal documents which are issued by incompetent agencies or persons in ministries, branches or localities are also subject to examination and handling under Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 40, if so requested by agencies, organizations, individuals or mass media agencies. These documents include:

a) Documents with legal norms which are issued or jointly issued by ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, People’s Councils or People’s Committees of all levels but do not take the form of circulars of ministers or heads of ministerial-level agencies or joint circulars of a minister and the head of a ministerial-level agency, of a minister or the head of a ministerial-level agency and the President of the Supreme People’s Court or the Chairman of the Supreme People’s Procuracy, resolutions of People’s Councils or decisions and directives of People’s Committees;

b) Documents which have a format and contents similar to legal documents (for example: circular, resolution, decision, directive) and documents which do not take the form of legal documents but have legal norms (for example: official letter, announcement, notice, regulation, charter, program, plan and other forms of administrative documents), issued by agencies or individuals incompetent to issue legal documents, including heads of government-attached agencies, heads of units within ministries, ministerial-level agencies or government-attached agencies, chairpersons, standing bodies and agencies of People’s Councils of all levels, chairpersons of People’s Committees of all levels, heads of specialized agencies of provincial- or district-level People’s Committees, heads of provincial- or district-level bodies of agencies and units under ministries, ministerial-level agencies or government-attached agencies (including documents which are signed on behalf of the above authorities).

3. Documents specified at Points a and b, Clause 2 of this Article which are detected by cadres and civil servants of document-examining agencies are also subject to examination and handling.

Article 3. Contents of examination of documents

The examination of documents prescribed in Article 3 of Decree No. 40 covers the consideration, evaluation of and conclusion on the constitutionality and legality of to-be-examined documents based on the following contents:

1. Availability of bases for the issuance of an examined document or legal bases for the issuance of an examined legal document, which include legal documents of higher legal effect which are currently effective or have been signed for their issuance or passed but not yet took effect at the time of issuance and will take effect prior to or concurrently with the examined document. These legal documents include:

a) Legal document defining the functions, tasks and powers of the document-issuing agency, issued by a superior competent state agency;

b) Legal document governing subject matters and scope of regulation of the examined document, issued by a superior competent state agency.

2. Compliance with the competence to issue legal documents in terms of form and contents of documents:

a) Form-related competence: Competent agencies and persons may only issue legal documents in proper forms (titles) as prescribed;

b) Content-related competence: Competent agencies and persons may only issue documents with contents within their competence as prescribed by law or as assigned or decentralized in documents on the assignment or decentralization of management responsibilities or documents defining the state management functions, tasks, powers of each agency and authority, issued by competent superior state agencies.

3. Compliance with current law. Specifically:

a) Circulars and joint circulars of ministers and heads of ministerial-level agencies must comply with the Constitution, laws and resolutions of the National Assembly, ordinances, resolutions and joint resolutions of the National Assembly Standing Committee, orders and decisions of the President, decrees and joint resolutions of the Government, decisions of the Prime Minister and circulars of other ministers or heads of other ministerial-level agencies in the domains under the latter’s management;

b) Resolutions of provincial-level People’s Councils must comply with the Constitution, laws and resolutions of the National Assembly, ordinances, resolutions and joint resolutions of the National Assembly Standing Committee, orders and decisions of the President, decrees and joint resolutions of the Government, decisions of the Prime Minister and circulars of ministers and heads of ministerial-level agencies (below referred to as documents of central state agencies).

Resolutions of district-level People’s Councils must comply with documents of central state agencies and documents of provincial-level People’s Councils and People’s Committees.

Resolutions of commune-level People’s Councils must comply with documents of central state agencies and documents of provincial and district-level People’s Councils and People’s Committees;

c) Decisions and directives of provincial-level People’s Committees must comply with documents of central state agencies and resolutions of provincial-level People’s Councils.

Decisions and directives of district-level People’s Committees must comply with documents of central state agencies, documents of provincial-level People’s Councils and People’s Committees and resolutions of district-level People’s Councils.

Decisions and directives of commune-level People’s Committees must comply with documents of central state agencies, documents of provincial- and district-level People’s Councils and People’s Committees and resolutions of commune-level People’s Councils.

4. Compliance with formats and techniques of presentation as prescribed by current law.

5. Compliance with the sequence and procedures for the elaboration and issuance of legal documents as prescribed by law. When detecting a document with unlawful contents, the examination agency shall review the sequence and procedures for elaborating and issuing that document so as to obtain bases to handle the document and propose measures for handling its issuing agency or person and agencies and persons engaged in the elaboration, appraisal, verification and passage according to its competence.

Article 4. Legal bases for determining unlawful contents of examined documents

Documents serving as legal bases for determining unlawful contents of an examined document under Article 6 of Decree No. 40 must ensure the following conditions:

1. Being of a higher legal effect than the examined document, issued by competent agencies or persons.

In case legal documents serving as the legal bases for determining unlawful contents of an examined document contain different provisions on a matter, the document of the highest legal effect prevails.

In case all legal documents serving as the legal bases for examination are issued by a single authority but contain different provisions on a matter, the provisions of the latest document prevails; in case documents issued by different ministers or heads of ministerial-level agencies contain different provisions on a matter, the document issued by the minister or the head of the ministerial-level agency performing the state management of that area prevails.

2. Being currently effective or having been signed for issuance or passed but not yet took effect at the time of examination.

The time of examining a document is the time when a competent agency or person signs the document for issuance or passes the document, giving rise to the competence and responsibility of the agency competent to examine the document.

a) Documents which are effective at the time of examination:

The effective time of legal documents is determined under Article 78 of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents or Article 51 of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents by People’s Councils or People’s Committees.

In addition, a document serving as a legal basis for determining unlawful contents of an examined document must neither cease to be effective as specified in the document nor be replaced with a new document of the state agency which has issued such document nor annulled or abolished by a competent state agency.

A document which is suspended from implementation and pauses to be effective under Article 80 of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents or Article 52 of the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents by People’s Councils or People’s Committees must not be used as a basis for examining documents during the period its implementation is suspended till its effect resumes under a decision of a competent state agency.

b) Documents which have been signed for issuance or passed and do not yet take effect at the time of examination must take effect prior to or concurrently with the examined document. These documents include:

- Documents serving as legal bases for the issuance of the examined document;

- Documents relating to the determination of unlawful contents of the examined document.

Article 5. Disclosure of results of handling unlawful documents

1. Competent agencies shall, after handling documents with unlawful contents (including documents which are corrected) publicize decisions on such handling in the mass media, publish these decisions in Cong Bao and websites of issuing agencies or publicly post them up under Article 8 of Decree No. 40.

2. The results of handling unlawful documents which are examined by their issuing agencies or persons themselves shall also be disclosed under Clause 1 of this Article. The results of handling documents specified in Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 40 and specified in Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular shall be sent to agencies, organizations and individuals to whom the documents were previously sent; if these documents have already been published in Cong Bao, reported in the mass media, posted on websites of issuing agencies or otherwise publicly posted up, the handling results must also be published or reported on these media.

Chapter II

SELF-EXAMINATION AND HANDLING OF DOCUMENTS

Article 6. Responsibilities to self-examine documents

1. The responsibilities to self-examine legal documents are specified in Clause 1, Article 11 of Decree No. 40.

2. The responsibility to self-examine documents which contain legal norms but are not issued in the form of legal documents; documents with legal norms or a format and contents similar to legal documents which are issued by incompetent persons in ministries, branches or localities specified in Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 40 and Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular shall be assigned to ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies or chairpersons of the People’s Councils or People’s Committees that have these documents.

3. Depending on the nature, scope and requirements of management and quantity of documents issued by each ministry, branch or locality, the self-examination of documents may be assigned to the legal unit of such ministry or branch or the local justice agency, or to other units or departments of such ministry, branch or locality (below referred to as units) based on their assigned management areas on the condition of assuring close coordination with, and promoting the role of, the legal unit or local justice agency in planning, urging and overseeing the self-examination, summarization and reporting of self-examination results to competent state agencies.

Heads of legal departments of ministries and branches and directors of provincial-level Justice Departments shall advise ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies and provincial-level People’s Councils and People’s Committees in specifying the tasks of legal units and local justice agencies regarding: assigning units to assist ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies, People’s Councils and People’s Committees in self-examining documents according to regulations; issuing a process of self-examining and handling documents issued by themselves or jointly by themselves and others; and assuring conditions for the self-examination.

Article 7. Sending of documents and coordination in the self-examination and handling of documents

1. When releasing a legal document which has been signed for issuance by a competent agency or person, the document-releasing unit shall concurrently send the document to the unit assigned to examine such document for self-examination. When detecting a document with unlawful or inappropriate contents, the unit assigned to examine the document shall notify such to the unit in charge of elaborating and submitting the document and reach agreements on unlawful or inappropriate contents so as to work out handling measures and draft a document on the handling for reporting to the agency or person that has issued the document for timely handling according to his)her)its competence.

2. For a joint document, the unit which is assigned to examine documents of each ministry or branch shall self-examine its contents falling under the state management of its ministry or branch and, at the same time, coordinate with concerned units of the other issuing ministries and branches in examining all contents of the document. When detecting unlawful or inappropriate contents of a joint document, agencies which have signed the document shall also coordinate with one another in proposing measures for handling the document.

Chapter III

EXAMINATION AND HANDLING OF DOCUMENTS ACCORDING TO COMPETENCE

Article 8. Sending documents to agencies and persons competent to examine documents

1. After a legal document is signed for issuance or passed, the agency or person competent to issue the document and drafting agency shall send that document to the agency or person competent to examine the document via the Justice Ministry’s Department for Examination of Legal Documents, legal departments of ministries or ministerial-level agencies or provincial-level Justice Departments (below referred to as document-examining agencies) under Article 19 of Decree No. 40.

The agency or person competent to issue the document shall write in the document’s “Recipients” item the name of the document-examining agency to which the document should be sent for examination.

2. For documents specified in Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 40 and Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular, agencies shall, upon receiving requests of agencies, organizations or mass media agencies, send these documents to competent agencies and persons for examination and handling under Articles 25 and 26 of Decree No. 40.

Article 9. Process of examining documents according to competence

1. A document-examining agency shall open a book of incoming documents to monitor the receipt of documents which are sent in for examination.

2. Leaders of the document-examining agency shall appoint full-time employees and collaborators to examine documents.

3. Document examiners shall compare the contents of examined documents with documents serving as legal bases for determining unlawful contents as specified in Article 6 of Decree No. 40 and Article 4 of this Circular so as to consider, evaluate and conclude on the legality of examined documents.

4. Document examiners shall sign and write the date of examination in the upper corner of documents they have examined (for certifying the examination and time of examination) and make a report enclosed with a list of documents they have examined).

5. Upon detecting unlawful contents of an examined document, document examiners shall report examination results and propose handling measures by filling in the document examination form issued together with this Circular (form No. 1 - not printed herein).

Depending on unlawful contents of the examined document and their possible consequences to the society and the nature and severity of faults of the issuing agency or person, document examiners may:

a) Handle the document by suspending the implementation, annulling or abolishing part or whole of the document. In case only the invoked legal bases or format of the examined document are wrongful while its contents are compliant with law, these errors shall be corrected;

b) Consider and handle the issuing agency or person according to the law on disciplining and criminal liability. Document examiners shall also propose the consideration and handling of cadres and civil servants engaged in the elaboration, appraisal, verification and passage of that unlawful document in case they are at fault.

6. After filling in the examination form, document examiners shall make a dossier on documents with unlawful contents, and submit it to leaders of the document-examining agency.

A dossier comprises: the examined document, documents serving as legal bases for determining unlawful contents of the examined document, the document examination form and other relevant documents (if any).

7. Leaders of the document-examining agency shall directly notify unlawful contents of the examined document to the issuing agency or person or report them to a competent agency or person for modification. The issuing agency or person shall self-examine and handle the document and report handling results under law.

A notice of unlawful contents of an examined document must have the following details: the title of the examined document; titles and contents of documents serving as legal bases for determining unlawful contents of the examined document; opinions on unlawful contents of the examined document; request for self-examination and handling of the examined document and disclosure of self-examination and handling results by the issuing agency or person.

In the process of examining a document, if detecting unlawful or overlapping contents or contents which are no longer compliant with documents already issued by superior state agencies or suitable to the socio-economic situation, leaders of the document-examining agency shall also request the issuing agency or person to study, review and handle such contents under law.

8. In case the document-examining agency disagrees with the results of handling an unlawful document by its issuing agency or the issuing agency fails to notify handling results according to regulations, the document-examining agency shall report such to a competent agency or person for subsequent handling under Decree No. 40.

A reporting dossier comprises: a report of the document-examining agency; the examined document; legal bases for examination; the document examination form; opinions of concerned agencies (if any); written notices of the document-examining agency; written explanations and notification of results of the self- examination and handling of the document by the agency that has the examined document, and relevant documents.

9. The document-examining agency shall open a book for monitoring the handling of documents with unlawful contents so as to oversee and urge the handling of documents by agencies. Such a book shall be made according to the form issued together with this Circular (form No. 2 - not printed herein).

Article 10. Examination of documents based on subject matters, geographical areas or sectors

1. A document-examining agency shall:

a) Elaborate plans and programs on examination of documents based on subject matters, geographical areas or sectors for submission to competent agencies for approval; notify these plans and programs to agencies having documents to be examined, and implement these plans and programs.

b) When necessary to form an inter-agency team to examine documents based on subject matters, geographical areas or sectors, propose the team’s composition to a competent agency for consideration and decision and coordinate with agencies having documents to be examined in setting specific working agendas, preparing relevant documents, arranging vehicles and accommodations and assuring other necessary conditions to serve the examination team under law.

2. The inter-agency examination team shall;

a) Implement approved the plan on examination of documents in coordination with the agency in charge of examination and agencies and localities having documents to be examined.

b) Report on examination results to the agency in charge of examination and agencies having documents examined.

3. Agencies having documents to be examined shall:

a) Make preparations according to the document-examining agency’s plan on examination of documents based in subject matters, geographical areas or sectors;

b) In case the examination team examines documents based on subject matters, geographical areas or sectors, agencies having documents to be examined shall coordinate with the agency in charge of examination in preparing necessary conditions to serve the examination team and in implementing the examination plan.

Article 11. Examination of documents in some other cases

1. Joint documents shall be examined under this Circular with close coordination among their signing agencies.

2. Documents containing state secrets shall be examined under the Prime Minister’s Decision No. 42/2009/QD-TTg of March 16, 2009, providing for the examination and handing of legal documents containing state secrets and the law on protection of state secrets.

3. Documents issued by chairpersons, standing bodies or agencies of People’s Councils which have format and contents similar to legal documents which are not legal documents but have legal norms shall be examined like documents promulgated by People’s Councils of the same level under Articles 25 and 26 of Decree No. 40.

Article 12. Coordination among agencies in detecting, examining and handling unlawful documents

1. The Justice Ministry’s Department for Examination of Legal Documents, legal departments of ministries and branches and local justice agencies which are assigned to act as focal points in examining and handling documents shall coordinate with central and local mass media agencies so as to receive timely information on documents showing unlawful signs and report on the results of handling unlawful documents.

2. In the process of examining documents or after sending notices of documents showing unlawful signs, document-examining agencies, issuing agencies and concerned agencies shall exchange opinions on unlawful contents of documents so as to work out solutions for handling these unlawful contents.

3. Agencies having documents examined shall coordinate with, and provide upon request information and documents related to examined documents to, examining agencies.

Chapter V

CONSOLIDATION OF DOCUMENT-EXAMINING ORGANIZATIONS AND PERSONNEL AND OTHER ASSURANCE CONDITIONS; REPORTING REGIME; EMULATION, COMMENDATION, REWARD, DISCIPLINING, MANAGEMENT AND DIRECTION WORK

Article 13. Consolidation of document-examining organizations and increase of document examiners

Depending on their functions, tasks, nature, characteristics and volume of work, legal departments of ministries, ministerial-level agencies and government-attached agencies, provincial-level Justice Departments and district-level Justice Bureaus shall coordinate with concerned units in advising and proposing ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies and chairpersons of People’s Committees of the same level to establish sections or groups or appoint full-time civil servants to take charge of examining documents and arrange sufficient payrolls so as to ensure fulfillment of assigned tasks.

Article 14. Organization and management of networks of document-examining collaborators

1. Heads of document-examining agencies of ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-attached agencies and provincial- and district-level People’s Committees shall elaborate regulations on the organization and management of a network of document-examining collaborators in conformity with their practical situation and conditions and submit these regulations to ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies and chairpersons of provincial- and district-level People’s Committees for issuance.

2. Heads of document-examining agencies of ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-attached agencies and provincial- and district-level People’s Committees shall sign contracts with collaborators according to the law on contracts.

3. Regimes applicable to document-examining collaborators comply with regulations of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice.

Article 15. Responsibilities to build databases for the examination and handling of documents

1. The director of the Justice Ministry’s Department for Examination of Legal Documents, heads of legal departments of ministries, ministerial-level agencies and government-attached agencies, directors of provincial-level Justice Departments and heads of district-level Justice Bureaus shall assist ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies and chairpersons of People’s Committees of the same level in regularly and timely reviewing and determining documents of higher legal effect which are currently effective or have been signed for issuance or passed at the time of examination so as to build up and manage databases to serve the examination and handling of documents under their competence; and regularly classify and process information and documents on the examination and handling of documents for inclusion in the databases.

2. A database has the following principal components:

a) Legal documents which have been reviewed to establish the legal bases for determining unlawful contents of examined documents under Article 4 of this Circular to serve the examination of documents by the ministry, branch or People’s Committee as prescribed in Decree No. 40;

b) Results of examination and handling of documents (including legal documents and documents specified in Clause 3, Article 1 of Decree No. 40 and Clause 2, Article 2 of this Circular);

c) Information on examination operations;

d) Other information, documents and data to serve the examination of documents.

A database also includes paper documents which are classified and arranged in a scientific manner and step by step computerized, depending on funding capacity and conditions, so as to facilitate their management, reference and use.

3. Depending on competence and the scope of to-be-examined documents, the responsibilities to review and handle legal documents specified at Point a, Clause 2 of this Article are assigned and decentralized as follows:

a) The director of the Justice Ministry’s Department for Examination of Legal Documents shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with agencies in reviewing documents issued by the National Assembly, the National Assembly Standing Committee, the President, the Government and the Prime Minister and legal documents issued or jointly issued by the Minister of Justice so as to establish legal bases for self-examination and handling of documents according to its competence and assist the Prime Minister in examining documents of other ministries, branches and localities according to regulations.

The Justice Ministry’s Department for Examination of Legal Documents shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with legal departments of ministries and branches in, summarizing the results of reviewing documents specified at Point b, Clause 3 of this Article so as to build a common database to serve the examination and handling of documents;

b) Heads of legal departments of ministries and branches shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with concerned agencies in, reviewing legal documents on matters under their state management which are issued by the National Assembly, the National Assembly Standing Committee, the President, the Government and the Prime Minister and legal documents issued or jointly issued by their ministers or heads so as to establish legal bases for self-examination or examination according to their competence;

c) Directors of provincial-level Justice Departments shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with professional agencies of provincial-level People’s Committees in, reviewing legal documents issued by provincial-level People’s Councils and People’s Committees so as to put them in the database set up by the Department for Examination of Legal Documents to serve the examination and handling of documents according to their competence;

d) Heads of district-level Justice Bureaus shall assume the prime responsibility for, and coordinate with professional bodies of district-level People’s Committees in, reviewing legal documents issued by district-level People’s Councils and People’s Committees so as to put them in the database set up by the provincial-level Justice Departments to serve the examination and handling of documents according to their competence and provide these data to commune-level officers in charge of judicial and civil status affairs for self-examination of documents of commune-level People’s Councils (if so assigned) and People’s Committees.

In the process of reviewing documents, if detecting contradictory, overlapping or inappropriate documents or regulations but the legal bases for determining their effect are still insufficient, reviewing agencies and organizations shall report them and propose handling solutions to competent agencies for consideration and decision.

Article 16. Biannual and annual reporting

1. Ministries, ministerial-level agencies and provincial- and district-level People’s Committees shall make biannual and annual reports on the examination and handling of documents under Point f, Clause 1, Point g, Clause 2, Article 35 and Point d, Clause 1, Article 36 of Decree No. 40; government-attached agencies shall report on the coordination with legal units of ministries and ministerial-level agencies in the self-examination and handling of documents related to their respective areas, specifically as follows:

a) The Justice Ministry’s Department for Examination of Legal Documents, legal departments of ministries and ministerial-level agencies, provincial-level Justice Departments and district-level Justice Bureaus shall make biannual and annual reports on the examination and handling of documents for submission to ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of Government-attached agencies and chairpersons of provincial- and district-level People’s Committees;

b) Ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-attached agencies and provincial-level People’s Committees shall send biannual and annual reports on the examination and handling of documents to the Ministry of Justice. District-level People’s Committees shall send biannual and annual reports on the examination and handling of documents to provincial-level People’s Committees, which shall be incorporated in reports of provincial-level People’s Committees;

c) The time for sending reports and the time for collecting data from biannual and annual reports on the examination and handling of documents comply with current statistics and reporting regulations of the justice sector.

2. Annually, the Justice Ministry’s Department for Examination of Legal Documents shall summarize reports on the examination and handling of documents of ministries, ministerial-level agencies, government-attached agencies and provincial-level People’s Committees specified in Clause 1 of this Article for submission to the Minister of Justice for consideration and reporting to the Prime Minister.

3. A biannual or annual report on the examination and handling of documents must have the following details:

a) The examination of documents according to competence in the reporting period, covering analysis and assessment of documents which are issued by the ministry, branch or locality and have been self-examined and handled; documents which are sent from other agencies for examination and have been actually examined; documents which are detected to have unlawful contents and must be examined and handled by issuing agencies or persons; documents which have been handled at the request of document-examining agencies; and documents which have been handled according to competence;

b) General assessment of the quality of the elaboration and promulgation of documents in the assigned domain and proposals;

c) The review of documents serving as legal bases for the examination of documents in the assigned domain; results of building the database to serve the examination of documents;

d) The situation of institutional grounds for examination work; organizational apparatus, personnel and funds for the examination of documents;

e) Coordination in the examination of documents and exchange of professional knowledge; training and re-training in examination work and other conditions for the examination of documents;

f) Difficulties, problems and recommendations;

g) Other relevant matters.

Article 17. Emulation, commendation, reward and discipline

1. Results and achievements obtained in the performance of assigned tasks of examining and handling documents constitute one of emulation criteria for the assessment, ranking and commendation and reward of concerned agencies, units and individuals.

2. Agencies, organizations and individuals that have fulfilled their assigned tasks and recorded outstanding achievements in the examination and handling of documents will be commended and rewarded according to the law on commendation and reward; if committing violations, they shall be handled according to law.

Article 18. Urging, direction and inspection of the examination and handling of documents

1. The urging, direction and inspection of the examination and handling of documents shall be carried out on a regular and periodical basis so as to ensure compliance with law, discover in time and widely apply good initiatives and examples in the examination and handling of documents, praise agencies, organizations and individuals that record outstanding achievements, redress mistakes and detect problems and troubles for timely guidance and explanation.

2. The Justice Ministry’s Department for Examination of Legal Documents shall assist the Minister of Justice in urging, directing and examining the examination and handling of documents by ministries, branches and localities.

3. Legal departments of ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies and government-attached agencies, provincial-level Justice Departments and district-level Justice Bureaus shall assist ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies and chairpersons of provincial- and district-level People’s Committees in urging and directing the examination and handling of documents in their ministries, branches and localities.

Chapter V

ORGANIZATION OF IMPLEMENTATION

Article 19. Effect

This Circular takes effect on January 15, 2011, and replaces the Justice Ministry’s Circular No. 01/2004/TT-BTP of June 16, 2004, guiding a number of articles of the Government’s Decree No. 135/2003/ND-CP of November 14, 2003, on examination and handling of legal documents.

Article 20. Implementation responsibility

1. The Justice Ministry’s Department for Examination of Legal Documents, legal departments of ministries, heads of ministerial-level agencies and government-attached agencies, provincial-level Justice Departments and district-level Justice Bureaus and commune-level officers in charge of judicial and civil status affairs shall assist ministers, heads of ministerial-level agencies, heads of government-attached agencies and chairpersons of People’s Committees of all levels in implementing this Circular.

2. Any problems arising in the process of implementation should be promptly reported to the Ministry of Justice for study and settlement.